The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1887-11-09


With regard to the form and demo-
mination of the bonds, it would
appear that when Mr.. Armstrong
left this country for London in
August, 1886, he was under the i'm
preston that they were to be in
pounds sterling, rs is usual when
foreign countries raise loans in Eng
land, whilst it seems equally certain
that the Premier, Mr.. Gibson, and
his colleagues understood that they
were to be in United States gold coin
in accordance with the Act. Mr..
Armstrong in his correspondence
with me complains that he received
no detailed instructions from the
late Minister of Finance or from the
premier with regard to negotiating
the loan, and that all such details
were left to his own judgment, and
he was therefore often obliged to
act on his own responsibility. 1t
must be admitted that there is no
record of any such instructions hav-
ing been given TO him, and when we
call to mind the circumstances con-
nected with the administration of
the Government at that time, it is
hardly surprising that no detailed
instructions were given to its tinan-
cial agent on such matter. Every
thing seems to have been left in Mr..
Armstrong; hands. This gentle
man came here as the representative
of London syndicate, and init
mated that it was prepared to float
a loan in England for this Govern
ment. The Cabinet invested him
(the representative of that syndi-
cate) with full powers to negotiate
such loan, but with no written in
structions as to the terms and other
important details. In justice to Mr..
Armstrong ii must be admitted that
this course placed him in a somewhat
difficult position.
The following is copy of the
power given to Mr.. Armstrong by
the late Minister of Finance to nego-
tlate the loan:
"To whom it may concern. BE
it known that by authority of His
Majesty the King in Cabinet Council,
l have given power to II. r. Arm
strong, ESQ.,, of London, England,
to negotiate on the part of the Ha-
waiian Government, and in conform
ity with the Act authorizing a loan
approved September 1st, A. d.
1886, and the Act amendatory there
of, approved October 10Th, A. ID.
1886, the sale of the coupon bonds
of the Hawaiian Government, and
to do and perform all acts which
may be necessary in the premises,
with the authority to delegate this
power.
"Witness my hand and the seal of
my Department, this 23d day of
October, A. d. 1886.
"(Signed) PAUL p. KANoA,
Ellis Hawaiian Majesty's Minis
ter of Finance"
Mr.. G. w. Macfarlane received a
precisely similar power, dated the
same day. 1t will be observed th at
Mr.. Armstrong had power to nego-
tiate the loan in conformity with the
Acts. This, in the absence of any
written instructions, threw very
grave responsibility on that gentle
man. Mr.. G. w. Macfarlane only
arrived in London after the loan
was hoated and the scrip issued.
When Mr.. Gibson learned from
Mr.. Armstrong that the bonds were
to be in pounds sterling, he objected,
but ON the latter explaining that it
was customary to so make them in
all cases when foreign loans were
placed in England, notwithstanding
that the statutes authorizing them
referred only to the coinage of the
country, he gave his reluctant
CONSENT" telling him at the same
time to go on and raise another
100000. This was, however, de-
layed, first by the news of the
change of government of July 1st,
and then stopped by cable mess
age from this Department. Thus it
will be seen that the issue of bonds
in pounds sterling has been done
with the concurrence of the duly
authorized agent of the Government,
and has been assented to by the
late Premier.
The first set of forms of bonds,
which arrived in July last contained
an unqualified statement that f200,-
900 sterling was "the equivalent of
$1,000,000 of gold coin of the
United States of the present STAN
dard," which was one that no Ha-
waiian Minister of Finance could
allow over his signature. This alone
was sufficient to condemn that form
of bonds, and as there appeared to
be other Irregularities in the wording
of them, l wrote to Mr.. Armstrong
in the same month (July) stating
that as that form of bonds could not
be signed and new ones would have
to be printed, ] hoped he might be
able to arrange for bonds in U. S.
gold to the amount of that coin
which this Government had received
in San Francisco, with the legiti.
mate charges added, leaving the
f15, 900 matter to be settled after
wards. He replied that this was
impossible and that no change in
the denomination of the bonds
could be made without breaking
l.